Express Newark Resident Poet, Jasmine Mans, Tells the Story of Newark Girlhood
June 21, 2024
Express Newark’s inaugural Poet-in-Residence Jasmine Mans honed her craft as a daughter of Newark and a member of The Strivers Row Poetry Collective, a renowned group of spoken word artists. Her poetry has garnered millions of views, including videos of Mans performing pieces like Footnotes for Kanye.
A decade later, she’s gone on to win literary acclaim and commercial success for her 2021 poetry collection Black Girl, Call Home, which explores Mans’ queer Black identity, her roots in Newark, and the complicated relationships between mothers and daughters—in addition to offering social commentary and her views on hip-hop culture.
The collection, published by Berkley - Random House, was named one of Oprah’s Most Anticipated LGBTQ Books and a TIME magazine Must-Read. Black Girl Call Home also won recognition from the Stonewall Book Awards and the Black Caucus of the American Library Association for Best Poetry. Essence magazine dubbed Mans the #1 Contemporary Black Poet to Know.